Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Sofia moved to Milan in 2017 to study fashion design, before relocating to London, and launching her company in 2020. Soubi is an eco-friendly brand and studio that creates elevated skin-wear.
Since launching Soubi and taking an artistic approach to designing, Sofia realised it would not guarantee success. Trying to appeal to a wider market, the biggest challenge was to continue being innovative whilst growing product ranges and customer base. With the fast-pace of the industry and competing in an already saturated market, Sofia had to quickly learn how to operate a successful business. “I loved the challenge of working to complement my design background with knowledge on accounting, finance, supply chain, and marketing. To help speed up this process, I wanted to surround myself with people that have more expertise on the areas I needed to improve on.”
Learning about Marangoni’s Incubator Programme and applying to expand her knowledge beyond fashion design, Sofia won the 2021 edition after missing out in 2020. Alumni of the school present existing and new business plans to a panel, followed by a Q&A session, with one winner receiving mentorship to expand their company.
Despite not winning in 2021, the process was a great learning opportunity as she was able to come up with the first concept for Soubi, identifying areas of the business needing help with and guidance on. “I came better prepared after working very hard on a detailed business plan and proved that my brand gained traction with sales. My expectations were to move from just being a fashion designer and broaden my knowledge to other aspects of the industry.”
After winning the programme, there were three main goals that Sofia wanted to accomplish; expanding her networking, growing the wholesale side of the business to increase sales, and to craft a well defined strategy allowing Soubi to grow and expand. “As a young entrepreneur, it was hard for me to overcome the mental block of launching my brand in a country that I did not know so well. My mentors really pushed me forward and helped me understand the steps I needed to take to accomplish my goals. They gave me the tools, connections, and most importantly the support to venture into, following my passion, and dream.”
“Sofia and Soubi Studio is a fantastic example of a hard-working entrepreneur that demonstrates great commitment to her craft in order to grow her business. Moreover, it has been a pleasure for IM Careers London to collaborate with both Zedonk & UKFT to mentor our alumna in order to reach her greatest potential.” – Ioanna Kefalogianni, Career Service and Industry Relationship Specialist, Istituto Marangoni London
Through the mentorship with Adam King, Head of Marketing, Lucy Warne, Client Success at Zedonk, and Paul Alger MBE, Director of International Business at UKFT, Sofia was able to rely on the expertise and knowledge while making difficult decisions relating to Soubi. “Adam helped me understand how to pitch Soubi, and draw on new ideas. Lucy trained me on how to use Zedonk, improving the quality of my work and advising on products. And Paul helped with PR, and in export and import procedures. I needed people who I could trust on that and could motivate me to develop my fullest potential as an entrepreneur.”
“This is a fantastic case of three UKFT members working together. Soubi Studio was a real standout candidate at last year’s Marangoni incubator, she has a great design aesthetic, and market understanding. Both Zedonk and UKFT have enjoyed working with her as she starts out on this journey and we are both convinced she will be successful based on what we’ve seen so far thanks to her knowledge, passion, business acumen, and dedication to hard work. It has been a real privilege to work with her as she builds into an international brand.” – Paul Alger MBE, Director of International Business, UKFT
Supported by both companies, Soubi is now a member of UKFT, gaining access to UK-based suppliers and manufacturers, as well as implementing Zedonk software to help sustain growth, both essential to a start-up. “Zedonk and UKFT helped me on the business aspect of my brand; creating line sheets, tracking orders, creating production orders to send to factories, organising and tracking suppliers, raw materials and costs. I’t’s fast, practical, and very intuitive, allowing me to nicely present a professional image that buyers and consumers trust.”
Soubi has gone from strength to strength over the year of mentorship, the brand has already secured first wholesale orders in the UK and US, participated in a NYFW show hosted by Flying Solo, pop-ups in London with Lone Design Club, and featured in Harper’s Bazaar UK.
